That's the way that it should be
by MyMaladaptiveWorld
Summary: They were all together but, where was he? Ventus knew that something just didn't seem right to him. A short story inspired by the song "Happier" by Marshmello. Takes place after KH3. May contain spoilers. This story contains no ships, just brotherly love!


_I thought of this story when listening to the song "Happier" by Marshmello. There's a lot more to the story in my head, as my mind tends to make up mini "music videos" to a lot (if not all) of the music I listen to. But this is basically the main idea of it ~_

_That's the way that it should be.._

It was another day setting in beautiful Twilight Town. Some shops closing up for the day, while others were prepping to open for the night, there was going to be another short film being played in the square that night. Kids were still playing in the streets, friends were goofing around riding skateboards and playing games, all the while the sound of the trolly could be heard passing through the town.

Sitting up on the clock tower were Sora, Ventus, Roxas and Xion. Roxas and Xion had already been there for quite some time, while Sora and Ventus joined them at the usual spot a little while after. Of course it wouldn't be right to not enjoy some SeaSalt ice cream after a long day of doing nothing. The four had spent the day having fun in the town, and even met up with Hayner, Pence, and Olette for a while, so relaxing on the clocktower with some ice cream was a must (as it always is.)

" I so beat Roxas in that match!" Sora confidently stated as he gestured at Xion for agreement.

"What?! No way!" Roxas was quick to jump in and redefine the comment. "I totally won that thing!"

They were referring to their match in "The Struggle" Competition. The two obviously had different opinions about who won. Xion laughed as she responded back to the two, trying not to show partiality. "Um, well, I mean, Sora did put up a good fight!" Stuttering in her words, she was clearly trying to make Sora feel good without admitting he'd lost. Sora took that as his opportunity to claim his victory.

"See! I told you I won!" The overly confident Sora exclaimed. Xion quickly corrected. "Well, I never said that!" Ventus leaned over and chimed in with his stance on the matter.

"Yeah, Sora, I'm pretty sure Roxas won that thing." He wasn't just pretty sure, he was sure. Roxas took the chance to give a sarcastic comment on that note.

"Yeah, it _is_ my town, after all." He jokingly, but also snobbishly said as he took another bite of his ice cream.

"Hey! What's that got to do with it?!" Sora waved around his ice cream while he called Roxas out on his boasting. "And what gives Ven?!" He looked over at Ventus who was on his right, while snickering Roxas and Xion were to his left. Ventus laughed in reply "Hey, just stating the facts!"

The four sat there joking and laughing with each other. Going back and forth sharing comments and throwing playful insults at one another. They were having a good time, you could tell. While Sora, Roxas and Xion kept going on about it, Ventus slowly had his attention drift away from the conversation, almost as if he realized something. His smile turned into a serious expression, as he glanced over to his right. Completely out of the conversation with the other three, he was in his own world for a moment. Looking, gazing to the right of him, he became very quiet, as if he was in deep thought about something. His serious expression slowly turned into a sad one. As the other three went on laughing and joking, Ventus just sat there. Quiet.

"Huh?" Xion noticed the quiet Ventus, as he was sitting across from her line of view past Roxas and Sora. Her reaction caused Sora and Roxas to also bring their attention to him. Sora was quick to inquire. "Hey Ven, you okay?"

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine." The blonde boy snapped back from his thoughts at Sora's question. Roxas also commented.

"You sure? You seem a little out of it?"

"Yeah" Ventus again said, "I'm fine, just thinking." He said with a small smile, trying to reassure the three questioning friends he was, well, fine. The three took it as that and slowly returned back to regular conversation, but as they did Ventus remained quiet. He glanced down at his now somewhat melting ice cream. He was thinking again. He glanced back up at the three next to him, then he just stared down again for a moment. Thinking.

"He should be with us."

His quiet soft voice broke the small silence left behind when the chattering three paused to take a bite of their melting ice cream.

"Hm?" The three questioned, hearing what their friend just said.

"What did you say?" Sora asked first, then Ventus replied again, reaffirming what he said.

"He should be with us."

They were still confused.

"Who do you mean, Ven?-" Xion asked, Roxas' question followed.

"-Who should be with us?"

Ventus was quiet before replying. He was still in deep thought.

"Our brother."

"Brother?" Xion and Roxas still didn't know who he was talking about. But Sora knew.

"Vanitas." Sora confirmed. He knew exactly who Ventus was referring to. Ventus nodded.

"Yeah." Ventus gave Sora a small glance before he looked over at his right again. This time, imagining his other half sitting beside him, with the rest of them. All together.

The four sat quiet for a second. Xion and Roxas were still not sure who Vanitas was, but noticing Sora and Ventus' reaction about him, they remained quiet to let them think. They'll ask later.

Ventus slowly looked up at the sunset. How beautiful it was. He thought about how nice it was to be able to sit with those close to him. To have friends. He wondered if Vanitas had ever seen something so beautiful, or experienced such a feeling. Ventus knew something didn't feel right to him, something just didn't seem right. They were all together but, where was he? He wanted Vanitas with them. Right where he should be.

Ventus whispered to himself with sincere thought,

"Brother, where are you?"

🎵 "Then suddenly for a minute,

I want to change my mind,

'cause this just don't feel right to me.

I want you to be with us,

I want to see you smile,

'cause that's the way that it should be~"🎵

_**The purpose for these short stories are meant to be like a therapy for me, to help me manage my Maladaptive Daydreaming condition. (More info in bio). __Please do not leave any negative comments on my stories. (constructive criticism welcome) If you don't like them or think they're silly, you don't need to read them. If you do find my stories interesting and enjoy reading them PLEASE let me know! That would actually help me so much, mentally, emotionally, and with my self-confidence. _

_Thank you so much to everyone who will read my stories and support my journey to try and manage my dream worlds~**_


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